 clickable | | Our Physical Surroundings Are Holy We who tend to think of nature as nothing more than a usable commodity can learn a great deal from Francis's relationship with the environment. He teaches us the liberating truth that our physical surroundings are holy because they aren't purely physical. Instead, they're permeated through and through with the Spirit and beauty of God. In a mysterious way that the mind can't fathom but the heart knows full well, we don't just dwell in God's world. In dwelling in God's world, we also abide in God himself. —from the book Perfect Joy: 30 Days with Francis of Assisi by Kerry Walters |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"God writes his name on the soul of every man."
— Venerable Fulton Sheen † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"Now, may our God be our hope. He Who made all things is better than all things. He Who made all beautiful things is more beautiful than all of them. He Who made all mighty things is more mighty than all of them. He Who made all great things is greater than all of them. Learn to love the Creator in His creature, and the maker in what He has made."
— Saint Augustine, p. 136
AN EXCERPT FROM
Augustine Day by Day † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love."
1 John 4:7-8 |  click to read more | | BLESSED AMBROSE OF SIENA Blessed Ambrose (1220-1286) was born in Siena, Italy, the son of a book illuminator. He was born so severely deformed that his parents could not bear the sight of him. They put their son in the care of a nurse who took the child with her to daily Mass at the Dominican church. The child, often fussy, would become calm when he was placed near the altar of relics, and would cry when he was removed. While praying at the altar, the nurse would conceal the child's hideous face with a scarf. This practice continued for a year. One day a pilgrim told the nurse to remove the baby's scarf and prophesied that the child would one day become a great man. A few days later, before the same altar, the child Ambrose stretched out his deformed limbs and pronounced the name of Jesus; from that moment he was miraculously healed into a beautiful and perfectly formed child. Blessed Ambrose grew in piety and was determined to become a Dominican friar. His family and friends opposed his plan and attempted to dissuade such a handsome and talented youth from becoming a poor friar. Ambrose overcame these obstacles and joined the Dominicans at the age of 17. He studied under St. Albert the Great along with St. Thomas Aquinas, and went on to become a preacher, teacher, missionary, diplomat, and peace-broker. His skills with diplomacy earned him the respect of kings and popes alike. His feast day is October 8th. | Saint John Leonardi Saint of the Day for October 8
(1541 – October 9, 1609) "I am only one person! Why should I do anything? What good would it do?" Today, as in any age, people seem plagued with the dilemma of getting involved. In his own way, John Leonardi answered these questions. He chose to become a priest. After his ordination, Fr. Leonardi became very active in the works of the ministry, especially in hospitals and prisons. The example and dedication of his work attracted several young laymen who began to assist him. They later became priests themselves. John lived after the Protestant Reformation and the Council of Trent. He and his followers projected a new congregation of diocesan priests. For some reason the plan, which was ultimately approved, provoked great political opposition. John was exiled from his home town of Lucca, Italy, for almost the entire remainder of his life. He received encouragement and help from Saint Philip Neri, who gave him his lodgings—along with the care of his cat! In 1579, John formed the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, and published a compendium of Christian doctrine that remained in use until the 19th century. Father Leonardi and his priests became a great power for good in Italy, and their congregation was confirmed by Pope Clement in 1595. John died at the age of 68 from a disease caught when tending those stricken by the plague. By the deliberate policy of the founder, the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God have never had more than 15 churches, and today form only a very small congregation. The Liturgical Feast of Saint John Leonardi is October 9.
Reflection What can one person do? The answer is plenty! In the life of each saint, one thing stands clear: God and one person are a majority! What one individual, following God's will and plan for his or her life, can do is more than our mind could ever hope for or imagine. Each of us, like John Leonardi, has a mission to fulfill in God's plan for the world. Each one of us is unique and has been given talent to use for the service of our brothers and sisters for the building up of God's kingdom. Saint John Leonardi is the Patron Saint of: Pharmacists | Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 GAL 3:1-5 O stupid Galatians!
Who has bewitched you,
before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?
I want to learn only this from you:
did you receive the Spirit from works of the law,
or from faith in what you heard?
Are you so stupid?
After beginning with the Spirit,
are you now ending with the flesh?
Did you experience so many things in vain?–
if indeed it was in vain.
Does, then, the one who supplies the Spirit to you
and works mighty deeds among you
do so from works of the law
or from faith in what you heard? Responsorial Psalm LK 1:69-70, 71-72, 73-75 R. (68) Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
R. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; He has come to his people. Alleluia ACTS 16:14B R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Open our hearts, O Lord,
to listen to the words of your Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 11:5-13 Jesus said to his disciples:
"Suppose one of you has a friend
to whom he goes at midnight and says,
'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,
for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey
and I have nothing to offer him,'
and he says in reply from within,
'Do not bother me; the door has already been locked
and my children and I are already in bed.
I cannot get up to give you anything.'
I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves
because of their friendship,
he will get up to give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.
"And I tell you, ask and you will receive;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives;
and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
What father among you would hand his son a snake
when he asks for a fish?
Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit
to those who ask him?"
| Daily Meditation: Luke 11:5-13 How much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him? (Luke 11:13) "I'm going to beat this problem if it's the last thing I do!" How often do you say things like that? It's common to talk about a trial as a battle we need to overcome. We even use military words like "conquer, defeat, and prevail." We pride ourselves on our warrior-like perseverance. But having an aggressive mentality like this can backfire when things don't go our way. When we lose, we can feel as if we didn't work hard enough or that our strategy was flawed or that there was something that we could have done differently. We feel not only defeated but responsible for our defeat—even in the face of factors far beyond our control. What if, instead of thinking about fighting a battle, we chose to surrender instead? Not in the sense of giving in to whatever is disturbing us, but in the sense of surrendering ourselves to God? This requires a different, less self-focused type of perseverance: the determination to control our anxious thoughts, to stop spinning our wheels unnecessarily, and to persist in trusting in God's help and guidance. In today's Gospel reading, Jesus urges us to persevere in surrendering as well: to ask and seek and knock at our Father's door, firm in the belief that God will hear and answer us. Jesus asks that rather than run into battle on our own, we should choose to wait to hear from him. He asks us to surrender our anxieties to him along with any thoughts of self-sufficiency that might keep us from trusting him and following his commands. What does this kind of surrender look like? Actually, it's quite active. It means being aware of our thoughts—especially our fears—and giving them to the Lord. It means asking him to help us decide what we should do and what we should release into his care. It means giving all our worries to him each night and trusting that he'll be with us as we sleep. Surrendering to God isn't always easy. It can be hard to give up the illusion that we are in total control. But God is our Father. He loves us and will never abandon us. "Lord, help me to surrender my independence. I trust in you." Galatians 3:1-5
(Psalm) Luke 1:69-75 |  clickable | Let us dream as a single human family, as fellow travelers sharing the same flesh, as children of the same earth which is our common home, each of us bringing the richness of his or her beliefs and convictions, each of us with his or her own voice, brothers and sisters all.
— Pope Francis
from Fratelli Tutti | my2cents:
"After beginning with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh?"
Are you listening to the flesh? Even when I am writing, in flesh, I do so though, moved by the Holy Spirit.
When I speak of things, of carnal value, they are to raise awareness of the spiritual worth.
For instance, the other day, I spoke of unforgiving, didn't I? Why do I struggle with broken promises? Because, it has everything to do with our Lord. Our promises to our Lord. I worry so much for the one breaking their promise, and that's where everything hurts. I worry about them not caring so much any more. I worry about them not being close to the family of God. That's the heart ache, not anger. A broken promise to God, it can be punishable, unless. And so, I prayed for mercy for them. I do not want these folks drifting off. I do not want any of you drifting off. I told my RCIA class too "look, I don't want you being normal Catholics, I want you to be active Catholics, abnormal Catholics". There is a difference between a person who call themselves Christian, and the one who strives to live just like Christ in every aspect of their life. | "He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people."
He promises. God promises. He promised mercy and He kept His promise. Let's keep mercy in mind in our lives always, be merciful, be forgiving, and this is going to take something from you....so you can give it. Think Christ. | "And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives."
This is an amazing word we get to hear from our Lord Christ Himself. Ask and receive. How many of us though...and be honest, are scared to ask? To ask for forgiveness? To ask for faith? To ask for purification? And be careful when asking for wisdom! LOL, been there done that. But our Lord asks us to be persistent in prayer. He encourages to be persistent. I learn from being a dad. Sometimes my kids are all talking to me at the same time. I'm not saying this is how God is, but sometimes, one will get my special attention by the way they asked or for their lack of pleading for attention. One asks persistently in a quiet voice, another screams frantically, and another just seems to be talking for the sake of talking. Who gets my attention? Most often the one who I feel is more sincere. I look at all of them with my human eyes, and I go to the one in most need. Do I listen to the scoundrel? Not often. Do I listen to the ever faithful? Quite often. Spread this out to further family circle, in laws and nieces and such. Do I listen to the scoundrel's pleas? Not often. To the faithful and true? Yes, those that I know live a sacrificial life.
I am encouraging you to be sincere, sacrificial, and true. | Ask, not for material things, but ask what is most important...for God Himself!! Right? I mean, if you could ask our Lord for anything...right? Would it be for something temporal or eternal?
He tells us what to ask for. Lord, Holy Spirit, thank you for hearing our prayer, I ask for the Holy Spirit to come among us, for all of us reading this today, infuse your light in our heart and soul, so that others may be attracted to live Your Way, always and forever. | Random Bible verse from online generator:
Psalm 31:24
24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD! | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | |
